What is your passion? How do you find it? While this could be described ten different ways by ten different people, the underlying similarity is “it’s something that you love doing.” I, personally, relate passion as something that defines you and drives you. Some people have a passion for designing, others a passion for teaching, but passion can come in many forms, but the key to passion is that it must be organic. No one can tell you what you’re passionate about just as no one can say to you when you’re in love. But much like love, you have to look deep within yourself and find out the true meaning of this feeling.

So, what do I mean, “Life getting in the way of Passion.”

While we all have our passions or either we’re looking for them, what do we do if our passions can’t pay the bills? Well, what else, we work! We do what needs to be done. We flip those burgers; we do those taxes, we stock those shelves, we work that 9 to 5 or 5 to 9. But that’s not it. What else happens? Life! Life always seems to have its day to day demands. Its weekly scheduling, nights outs with the friends, visiting the relatives, or just coming home from work to relax to do it all over again tomorrow. What else does life do? It gives you responsibilities, but most of all, it makes you make a choice. But the ramifications of these decisions are unknown. How could we ever know the results of a decision that you never made? In reality, if you’re not doing what you’re passionate about, you’re making these choices every single day. You are giving up the possibility of what could be, for what I have right now. While each day, you’re upset at your boss, frustrated with your co-workers, or you’re beating yourself up because you’re not where you want to be, doing what you want to be doing.

So why do we avoid following our passionate? Fear, money, time, or all three? Only you know. But hundreds of people are breaking this cycle every year by taking this leap of faith. Making the time, forsaking the right now money for the what could be money.

BUT HERE’S THE HARD PART.

No one said it was going to be easy. No one’s going to give you a “how to live your passions” book. But that’s the thing about passions that separate them from just “likes” or “love to-dos.” You have to enjoy every moment of it. Even the learning process. The ups, the downs, the failures, and of course the successes.

But what if your passion isn’t a multimillion dollar idea?

First remember, it’s a passion.

But secondly, a lot of people have turned their passions into a monetary success. Look at Mark Zuckerberg, Bill Gates, Tony Robbins, Tim Ferris.

The key is in the creativity. Don’t let your lack of creativity at the moment stop you from following your passion.

Finally, we have to be honest with ourselves. We have to know when we are making excuses for ourselves for why we are not following our passions. While there are things out there that are impossible to do in certain situations. For example, if your 5’9 and your passion is to play professional basketball as a center. Well, that might be out of your reach. No pun intended. Or if you want to do something that has an age requirement. These may be reasons to choose another path, but for the most part, there are no real impossibilities to following your passion. Let look at these excuses.

I’m too old.

I don’t have the money.

I’m not educated enough.

I wasn’t born with a silver spoon in my mouth.

I don’t know the right person.

I’m too busy.

I’m going to wait for the right time. (Hint: the right time will never come)

Do these excuses sound familiar? As I always say, “there’s no better time like the present.”

If you’re following your passion right now, I commend you. You are the 1%. The other 1% that actually started. That didn’t put off your passion any longer. The 1% that dove head first into your dream no matter where it took you. I wish you well! May you continue to inspire the rest of us to live our passion and follow our dream.

To those not yet living your passion, it’s not too late. It’s not the right time either. But it never will be. It wasn’t the right time for me to write this blog. But here we are. Don’t let your excuses grow to become regrets.